TALE OF THE TAPE

Week 7: Baltimore Ravens At Houston Texans

Ravens

Texans

Quarterback

Joe Flacco is not coming off his most inspired effort, but his team still emerged victorious in Week Six against the Cowboys. That Flacco can lead his team to a win when he is not having his best game speaks volumes. Flacco can easily bounce back due to his size, arm strength and passing accuracy.

Winner
Matt Schaub and the Texans had a miserable night against the Packers and tasted defeat for the first time this season. This does not mean the Texans are not going to bounce back and remain an elite team in the AFC. Schaub is an accurate passer, reads defenses well and generally makes the right decision with the football.

Offense

The Ravens are going to stick the ball in the arms of Ray Rice on a regular basis from start to finish. That’s an excellent decision because Rice runs between the tackles and he can also get to the outside and make big plays. Torrey Smith is a big-play wide receiver while Anquan Boldin will make the tough plays on third downs. The offensive line is solid and consistent.

Winner
While the Ravens like to give the ball to Rice, the Texans want to give the ball to Arian Foster. He may be the best all-around back in the league because he’s an excellent receiver and a solid blocker. Wide receiver Andre Johnson needs to assert himself and let his talent dominate. Owen Daniels is a dependable tight end.

Defense

The Ravens have taken a couple of huge blows on the injury front. It looks like middle linebacker Ray Lewis (triceps) and cornerback Lardarius Webb (knee) are out for the season. Haloti Ngata is struggling with a foot injury and Terrell Suggs is not scheduled to return until Week Nine. The Ravens are in trouble on the defensive front.

Winner
The Texans got embarrassed by the Packers in the Sunday night game, so look for a huge reversal this week. The loss of linebacker Brian Cushing hurts them, but they have a solid defense led by J.J Watt who may be the defensive player of the year.

Special Teams

Winner
The Ravens got a huge lift from their special teams in the win over the Cowboys as Jacoby Jones returned a kickoff 108 yards for a score in the third quarter. Justin Tucker has given the Ravens dependability in the kicking game, making 12-of-13 FG attempts this year.

The Texans are fairly consistent on special teams. They don’t usually hurt the Texans but they don’t often make big plays. Shayne Graham is a dependable kicker who made a 51-yard field goal against the Packers. Donnie Jones has a solid leg and he averaged 51.5 yards per punt against the Packers.

The Winner Is

WinnerTexans

3 out of 4

The Ravens may be coming off a 31-29 win over the Cowboys, but they appeared to get hit hard by injuries as they lost cornerback Lardarius Webb and middle linebacker Ray Lewis to serious injuries. They will have their hands filled with the Texans, who should be motivated after losing their first game of the season to the Packers in Week Six.

In honor of Pitt playing the most defensive minded team in the country in Virginia, Starkey and Mueller drafted the best defensive teams of all-time across all sports with a sixth pick of the best defensive player.